Railway track support structure

ABSTRACT

A railway track in which the track structure is supported by rigid supporting faces, through elastic layers consisting of an elastomer containing for the greater part finely dispersed gas cells, each of said elastic layers consisting at least partly of a moulded setting resin material, said material during setting forming a strong bond with both the track structure and the rigid supporting faces.

United States Patent lnventor Jacob Albertus Eisses Bilthoven, Netherlands Appl. No. 759,090 Filed Sept. 11, 1968 Patented Feb. 23, 1971 Assignee James Walker 8: Co., (Nederland) N.V.

Schiedam Netherlands Priority Sept. 13,1967

Netherlands 6,712,548

RAILWAY TRACK SUPPORT STRUCTURE Primary Examiner-Arthur L. La Point Assistant Examiner-Richard A. Bertsch Attorneylmirie, Smiley, Snyder & Butrum 4 Claims, 3 Drawing Figs.

US. Cl. 238/265, ABSTRACT: A railway track in which the track structure is 238/283, 238/287, 238/307 supported by rigid supporting faces, through elastic layers Int. Cl E0lh 2/00, consisting of an elastomer containing for the greater part fine- E01b 5/00, E01b 9/00 ly dispersed gas cells, each of said elastic layers consisting at Field of Search 238/265, least partly of a moulded setting resin material, said material 287, 283; 238/283, 265, 287,307, 1, 29, 24-27, during setting forming a strong bond with both the track struc- 264 ture and the rigid supporting faces.

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INVENTOR JAc e A. Eissss ATTORNEYS RAILWAY TRACK SUPPORT STRUCTURE The invention relates to a railway track in which the track structure is supported by rigid supporting faces, said faces more particularly forming part of a constructive work,

through elastic layers consisting of an elastomer containing for the greater part finely dispersed gas cells, for example in the fonn of finely granulated cork. Such layers containing finely dispersed gas cells are compressible in all directions without material being displaced. It is an object of the invention to provide such a track wherein readjusting forces are working in all directions on the rails supported by the supporting faces and a very strong dampening effect of vibrations occuring in the track structure is obtained.

According to the invention each elastic layer consists at least partly of a moulded setting resin material, said material during setting forming a strong bond with both the track structure and the rigid supporting faces. Between the rigid supporting faces, for example forming part of a constructive work, and the track proper, there is no mechanical connection at all. The moulded setting resin in serving both for supporting the track and providing the readjusting forces and for connecting the track to the supporting faces. Said resin can be a synthetic resin and also a resin originating from nature. With moulding is meant pouring by its own weight or by means of pressure for example injection moulding. For obtaining finely dispersed cells finely granulated cork can be used. However, it is also possible to have artificially formed cells for example by means of foaming.

In an advantageous embodiment in accordance with the invention said moulded supporting layer is enclosing part of the track structure. Then a still better support inseveral directions is obtained and one is less dependent of the quality of the bond between the supporting layers and the supporting faces.

In another embodiment according to the invention the rigid supporting faces are forming the boundary walls of at least at the upper end open chambers containing the material of the elastic supporting layers, the rails being embedded partly in said material, The part of the track structure which is embedded in the elastic supporting layer is in this embodiment formed by the rails itself.

In another embodiment of the track according to the invention the rigid supporting faces are forming the boundary walls of at least at the upper end open chambers containing the material of the elastic supporting layers and the track structure is consisting of rails connected by mechanical means to separate blocks, each of said blocks being embedded in the elastic supporting material in a chamber. In such an embodiment the rails can be connected to the blocks whereas an intermediate layer of elastic material is placed between each block and the rail. This elastic layer can have other properties than the layer in which the blocks are embedded. In such an embodiment the specific load of the layers is decreasing in the direction away from the foot of the rail.

The invention also relates to a method for arranging a railway track in one or more of the embodiments described above. According to the invention first the rails are adjusted in the right height and in the right distance to each other and then each supporting layer is moulded, the moulded material during setting forming a strong bond with both the track structure and the supporting faces. In applying such a method one is completely free in adjusting the rails whereas upon arranging the supporting layer at the sametime the rails are connected to the supporting faces.

Some embodiments of a railway track according to the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawing in which:

FIG. 1 is a cross section of a rail supported by a supporting face through a number of supporting layers;

FIG. 2 a cross section of a rail in another embodiment of the support;

FIG. 3 a cross section of a rail in still another embodiment of the support.

In the embodiment according to FIG. I the foot of a rail 1 is supported by a pressure dividing plate 3 through a layer 2 consisting of an elastomer containing finely dispersed gas cells. These cells can bet obtained as a result of the fact that the elastomer is containing finely granulated cork. Below the plate 3 is lying a layer 4 also consisting of an elastomer which comprises finely dispersed gas cells. Below the layer 4 is again lying a pressure dividing plate 5 which for example can consist either of an elastomer without gas cells or of a rigid material. Below the layer 5 are lying three further layers 6, 8 and 10 also consisting of an elastomer containing finely dispersed gas cells. Between each two layers 6, 8 and I0 is lying a pressure dividing intermediate layer 7, 9. The lowest layer 10 is supported by a rigid supporting face which for example forms part of a portion of a bridge or of a flyover. The layers 4, 6, 8 and 10 successively have a larger area and contain a different percentage cells that is that from the upper layer till the lowest layer the next layer contains a larger percentage cells than the preceeding layer. The pressure dividing layers 3, S, 7 and 9 project in horizontal direction in relation to the respective layers 4, 6, 8 and 10 lying under the respective layers 3, 5, 7 and 9. The several layers are formed by moulding and during the setting of the moulded material a bond is formed between the successive layers. The layer 3 forms a strong bond with the foot of the rail and the layer 10 forms a strong bond with the supporting face 11.

In the embodiment according to FIG. 2 a part of of a constructive work in steel is shown. To the upper surface of a girder l2 upright plates 13 and 14 are welded. The plate 13 is braced by a plate 15 and the plate 14'by a plate 16. The rail 17 for the greater part lies inside a chamber I8 defined by the upper surface of the girder l2 and the plates 13 and 14. The chamber 18 is filled with a resin I9'which has been poured into this chamber 18. During the setting of the resin a strong bond with the walls of the chamber 18 and with the rail 17 is formed.

The rail 17 is embedded in the material 18 with the portion lying under the head of the rail. The resin 19 contains finely dispersed gas cells. These gas cells can be obtained by foaming the material 19. Another possibility is that prior to the moulding of the material it is mixed with finely granulated cork.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3 a track is supported by a floor 20 of a constructive work in concrete, for example a tunnel. In the floor 20 chambers 21 are formed. Inside these chambers 21 are lying blocks 22, which for example can be made of a concrete mixture containing a resin as bounding agent. The blocks 22 are carrying a rail 23 through an elastic plate 24. The rail 23 is attached to each block 22 by means of curved resilient clamps 25 which with its one end are pressing the foot of the rail 23 and with its other end are finding support in a casinglike bearing 26. The bearings 26 are provided with protruding pins 27 which are glued in holes 28 in the block 22. The block 22 is" partly embedded in a moulded setting synthetic resin 29. This layer of resin 29 again contains finely dispersed gas cells.

In the various embodiments shown there is no mechanical contact at all between on the one side the rail and on the other side the rigid supporting faces of the constructive work. Both the connecting and the supporting is' completely provided by the elastic supporting layers.

I claim: 1

1. In a railway track assembly, in combination:

a rigid roadway structure, said roadway structure including a pair of open channels disposed in horizontally spaced parallelism and having their medial regions spaced apart substantially in accord with the gauge of the track;

a pair of rail structures, each rail structure including a lower supporting structure of a width less than the width of a channel of said roadway structure and an upper rail head portion, each supporting structure having a bottom face, each rail structure having said supporting structure thereof received in a respective channel and laterally positioned therein to dispose said rail head portions in predetermined spaced parallel relation according to the gauge of the track, and each supporting structure having its bottom face spaced from the bottom of its corresponding channel; and

a body of cured, synthetic resinous material filling each channel at least partially to surround a respective supporting structure and firmly anchor each rail structure to the roadway structure with the head portion thereof in fixed position with respect thereto, said body of cured synthetic resinous material containing finely dispersed gas cells, each rail structure including a concrete member forming said lower supporting structure and a rail secured to the upper face of said concrete member.

2. In a railway track structure as defined in claim 1, wherein each rail includes laterally projecting feet at its lower side, and elastic plate means disposed between said lower side of each rail and its concrete member.

3. In a railway track structure as defined in claim 2, including pin means anchored in said concrete member on opposite sides of its associated rail, and clamp and means engaged with said pin means and bearing upon said feet.

4. In a railway track assembly, in combination:

a rigid roadway structure, said roadway structure including a pair of open channels disposed in horizontally spaced parallelism and having their medial regions spaced apart substantially in accord with the gauge of the track; a pair of rail structures, each rail structure including a lower supporting structure of a width less-than the width of a channel of said roadway structure and an upper rail head portion, each supporting structure having a bottom face, each rail structure having said supporting structure thereof received in a respective channel and laterally positioned therein to dispose said rail head portions in predetermined spaced parallel relation according to the gauge of the track, and each supporting structure having its bottom face spaced from the bottom of its corresponding channel; and body of cured, synthetic resinous material filling each channel at least partially to surround a respective supporting structure and firmly anchor each rail structure to the roadway structure with the head portion thereof in fixed position with respect thereto, said body of cured synthetic resinous material containing finely granulated cork and finely dispersed gas cells. 

2. In a railway track structure as defined in claim 1, wherein each rail includes laterally projecting feet at its lower side, and elastic plate means disposed between said lower side of each rail and its concrete member.
 3. In a railway track structure as defined in claim 2, including pin means anchored in said concrete member on opposite sides of its associated rail, and clamp and means engaged with said pin means and bearing upon said feet.
 4. In a railway track assembly, in combination: a rigid roadway structure, said roadway structure including a pair of open channels disposed in horizontally spaced parallelism and having their medial regions spaced apart substantially in accord with the gauge of the track; a pair of rail structures, each rail structure including a lower supporting structure of a width less than the width of a channel of said roadway structure and an upper rail head portion, each supporting structure having a bottom face, each rail structure having said supporting structure thereof received in a respective channel and laterally positioned therein to dispose said rail head portions in predetermined spaced parallel relation according to the gauge of the track, and each supporting structure having its bottom face spaced from the bottom of its corresponding channel; and a body of cured, synthetic resinous material filling each channel at least partially to surround a respective supporting structure and firmly anchor each rail structure to the roadway structure with the head portion thereof in fixed position with respect thereto, said body of cured synthetic resinous material containing finely granulated cork and finely dispersed gas cells. 